Articulation of dolls.



IINITE STES T HARRY W. MEIER, OF BALTIMORE, MARYLAND, ASSIGNOR TO B. W.MEIER AND COMPANY, OF BALTIMORE, MARYLAND, A FIRM COMPOSED 0F SAID HARRYW.

MEIER AND ROZEL BERRYMAN.

ARTICULATION OF DOLLS.

Application filed February 15, 1913.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, HARRY I/V. MEIER, of thecity of Baltimore and State of Maryland, have invented certainImprovements in the Articulation of Dolls, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to certain improvements in the invention setforth and described in Letters Patent No. 818,842, granted to me on the24th day of April, 1906, as will hereinafter fully appear. In the saidpatented invention is described a branched elastic articulating deviceprovided with hooks or similar appliances, which as an entirety isplaced in the trunk of the doll and extended therein, so that itsvarious hooks may be attached to staples on the extremities of the doll.In practice it is found that the greatest wear of the elastic cord whichconstitutes the principal portion of the articulating device, takesplace where the same passes through the hollow spheres which form theshoulder-joints; and the deterioration of said parts of the elasticcord, renders the entire elastic articulating de vice practicallyworthless, and it has to be replaced by another. To obviate this defectin the patented invention, I make the elastic cord which holds the handsto the arms, and the arms to the trunk of the doll, separate from thecord which connects the legs with the head; and should the arm sectionof the articulating devices become inoperative from wear, or by thedrying of the rubber element of the same, it can be replaced without inany manner affecting the other cord, or disconnecting the various partsof the t0 In the further description of the said invention whichfollows, reference is made to the accompanying drawing, forming a parthereof, and in which:

Figure 1 is a front view of a doll with certain parts of the trunk tornaway to disclose the articulating devices, and Fig. 2 a front view on anenlarged scale, of the said articulating devices as they appear beforetheir insertion in the doll. Fig. 3 is a still further enlargedlongitudinal section of a portion of the articulating devices.

Referring now to the drawing, 1 is the hollow body or trunk of the doll,and 2, 2 are the hollow legs the upper ends of which Specification ofLetters Patent.

Patented Mar. 31, 1914.

Serial No. 748,511.

are hemispherical and set in sockets in the trunk, so that the legs maybe easily moved independently of the trunk. The knee-j oints are formedof hollow spheres 3 which rest in sockets and connect the two parts ofthe leg. The arms 5 are hollow and constructed in a manner similar tothat of the legs, the shoulder-joints being formed of hollow spheres 7and the elbow-joints by similar spheres 8.

9 is the head, and 10 the neck which is rounded at its end and rests ina socket in the trunk. The hands, which are movable independently of theforearms, are denoted The lower portion of the legs 2, the hands 12, andthe head 9 are provided with staples a, a, and 0, respectively, to admitof the arglCtglittlOn of the doll, as hereinafter speciec. v

The doll thus far described is of wellknown construction and does not initself embody any part of the present invention.

The articulating devices above briefly referred to, consist of twoindependent elastic cords, A and B, which are made endless by means ofclasps cZ consisting preferably of short metallic tubes into which theends of the cords are inserted and secured by means of the inwardlypressed tongues e. The endless cord A is provided with hooks f adaptedto connect with the staples b on the hands 12. The endless cord B iscontrally folded to produce the loops 9 which are provided with hooks 7tadapted to unite with staples a on the legs 2. To the folded portion ofthe cord B is attached a wire i which is bent around the separated partsof the cord, and the encircling wire turns formed by the bending,slightly flattened to prevent the cord sliding through them and admit ofthe elongation of either loop independently of the other before thedevice is introduced into the trunk. The end of the wire 2' is formed asa hook j which is fitted to connect with the head staple c.

Supposing all the movable parts of the doll to be detached from thetrunk 1, the articulating operation consists as follows: The cord A isplaced in the trunk through the neck opening therein, and its hooks frun through the arms 5 and connected with the hand staples b. The cord Bin the condition shown in Fig. 2, is then inserted through the neckopening, and its loops 9 hooked to the leg staples a. The cord is thenstretched and its hook after being passed between the two lays of thecord A so as not to interfere with it, is connected to the head staple0.

It will be understood that a greater tension is required to hold thehead and the legs to the body or trunk, than to retain the arms inplace, and that by the employment of the two cords, instead of a singlecord as in the patented device, the required differential strains can beeasily arranged by the respective lengths of the two cords, and thestrain on the arm cord made such that the wear of the same caused byrubbing against the inner surface of the shoulder joints, can be reducedto a minimum without reducing the stress on the cord which connects thelegs with the head.

I claim as my invention In a doll of the character described, the bodyor trunk, the arms, and an endless elastic cord which extends throughthe body and its ends united to the arms, combined with the legs, thehead having at its under side a staple, and a folded endless elasticcord the loops of which are attached to the legs, and a wire which isfirmly secured to each of the folded portions of the cord and providedwith a hook and passes between the lays of the arm cord and is attachedto the head staple, substantially as specified.

HARRY 4V. MEIER.

WVitnesses:

NM. T. HOWARD, JULIA B. RoBINsoN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G.

